Soil: Definition

• Solid earth material that has been altered by physical,

chemical and organic processes so that it can support
rooted plant life.

• Engineering definition: Anything that can be removed

without blasting
Physical weathering breaks rocks into small
mineral particles.
A Horizon

B Horizon

C Horizon
 1.4 Transportation of Weathering
Products
•1.4.1 Residual soils-
•to remain at the original
place
– In the top layer of rock is
decomposed into residual soils
due to the warm climate and
abundant rainfall .
– Engineering properties of
residual soils are different with
those of transported soils
– The knowledge of "classical"
geotechnical engineering is
mostly based on behavior of
transported soils. The
understanding of residual soils
is insufficient in general.
•1.4.2 Transported soils-
•to be moved and deposited
to other places.
– The particle sizes of transported
soils are selected by the
transportation agents such as
streams, wind, etc.
• Interstratifications of silts and
clays.
– The transported soils can be
categorize based on the mode of
transportation and deposition (six
types).
 1.4.2 Transported Soils (Cont.)
• (1) Glacial soils: formed by transportation and
deposition of glaciers.
• (2) Alluvial soils: transported by running
water and deposited along streams.
• (3) Lacustrine soils: formed by deposition in
quiet lakes .(e.g. soils in Taipei basin).
• (4) Marine soils: formed by deposition in the
seas
• (5) Aeolian soils: transported and deposited
by the wind.
• (6) Colluvial soils: formed by movement of
soil from its original place by gravity, such as
during landslide .
 Residual
VI soils

Completely
V decomposed
Most of the residual soils
in are in-situ
decomposed from Highly
IV
igneous rocks decomposed
The red or yellow color is
due to the presence of Moderately
III
iron oxides. decomposed

II Slightly
decomposed

I Fresh
If all five factors are the same in two geographic regions, the soil
will be the same in both. Some basic examples of different soil
types include:

Temperate deciduous soil Coniferous forest soil Grassland soil

Tropical rain forest soil Desert soil

 3.1 Three Phases in Soils
S : Solid Soil particle
W: Liquid Water (electrolytes)
A: Air Air
Soil Properties
•Texture (particle sizes)
•Structure: organization into peds (lumps of soil)
•Color (useful in soils)
–Black rich in organic matter
–Gray poor in organic matter and iron (hydr-) oxides Reducing =
poorly drained
–Brown, yellow, red iron Oxidizing
•Porosity percentage of volume occupied by air or water
•Permeability speed at which fluid flows through it in response to
pressure gradient, high (fast) in coarse materials, low in fine materials)
•Nutrient Availability Water, K, N, P, Ca, Mg, others
•Engineering properties shrink-swell, bearing capacity, erodibility
Soil Classification
•Old Scheme
–Pedocal Calcium soil arid and semi-arid, caliche
–Pedalfer Al Fe soil humid, no caliche
–Laterites: tropical soils of iron and aluminum oxides

•USDA Taxonomy (based on observable properties)

–*Histosol (hist = tissue) O Thick O horizon, minimal mineral horizons near surface.
–Aridisol arid soils
–Verstisol Vertically mixed soils, due to shrink-swell clays
–*Entisol (recent) Minimal development of horizons, weak A and O, no or minimal B
–*Inceptisol (inception of soil development) Well developed A, weak B
–*Spodosol (spod-= ash) much like an alfisol with a very pronounced E horizon. Often quartzose.
–**Mollisol (moll- =soft) has mollic horizon (a thick, black, soft horizon as found under prairies)
–**Alfisol (pedalfer soil) has an argillic (clay-rich) B horizon, and no mollic horizon
–Ultisol ultimate weathering Like an alfisol, but more so. Soluble nutrients are low or gone.
–Oxisol oxides only left (past ultisol) Also known as laterite. All soluble minerals, including quartz, are
gone, leaving only iron and aluminum oxides
Soil Evolution
Initially, a soil is parent material at the surface. It is subjected to the soil forming
processes, changing the nature of the material.
• Organic matter accumulates, until a balance between deposition and decomposition
is reached.
• Weathering of minerals leads to
–release of soluble nutrients (K, Ca, Mg), which may be carried away by water
–formation of clays
• Translocation of clays downward and accumulation at water table (where speed
decreases) or where water is spread too thin to carry it onward

Example of till under grassland

1.Glacial till is exposed, not really a soil
2.Plants start to grow and organic matter accumulates as a weak A horizon Entisol
3.More organic matter accumulation to form a definite A horizon; weathering of
minerals and precipitation in soil causes a weak B horizon Inceptisol
4.Definite B horizon forms, much organic matter. Mollisol
5.Translocation of lots of clay from A horizon to B. Soluble minerals leached Alfisol
6.More translocation and leaching Ultisol
7.More translocation and leaching Oxisol
Soil Textures

• To determine the
texture of a soil
sample, find its
percent for sand, silt,
and clay.
• The texture of the soil
will be where all
three lines intersect.
Global Soil Regions USDA
Global Soil Regions FAO
 Soil
• Soil - a layer of weathered, unconsolidated material
on top of bedrock
– Common soil constituents:
• Clay minerals
• Quartz
• Water
• Organic matter

• Soil horizons
– O horizon - uppermost layer; organic material
– A horizon - dark layer rich in humus, organic acids
– E horizon - zone of leaching; fine-grained
components removed by percolating water
– B horizon - zone of accumulation; clays and iron
oxides leached down from above
– C horizon - partially weathered bedrock
 Soils and Climate
• Soil thickness and composition are
greatly affected by climate
– Wet climates:
• More chemical weathering and thicker soils
• Soils in moderately wet climates tend to have
significant clay-rich layers, which may be solid
enough to form a hardpan
– Arid climates:
• Less chemical weathering and thinner soils
• Subsurface evaporation leads to build-up of salts
• Calcite-rich accumulation zones may form,
cementing soil together into a hardpan
– Extremely wet climates (e.g., tropical
rainforest)
• Highly leached and unproductive soils (laterites)
• Most nutrients come from thick O/A horizons
 Soil Development Over Time
• Residual soil - weathering of underlying rock
• Transported soil - brought in from elsewhere
– Floodplain deposits, etc.
– Wind-transported soil is called loess
• Soil composition
– Determined by parent rock composition
– Evolves with time and chemical weathering

• Soil thickness
– Increases with time
– Typically greater in wetter climates
– Greater in areas with low slopes
 Sandy soil
Sandy Soil- This type has the

Sandy Soil- This type has the biggest particles and the size of the particles does determine
the degree of aeration and drainage that the soil allows. It is granular and consists of rock
and mineral particles that are very small. Therefore the texture is gritty and sandy soil is
formed by the disintegration and weathering of rocks such as limestone, granite, quartz and
shale. Sandy soil is easier to cultivate if it is rich in organic material but then it allows
drainage more than is needed, thus resulting in over-drainage and dehydration of the plants
in summer
Sandy soil
 Clay soil
• Clay Soil-Clay is a kind of material •
that occurs naturally and consists of
very fine grained material with very
less air spaces, that is the reason it is
difficult to work with since the
drainage in this soil is low, most of
the time there is a chance of water
logging and harm to the roots of the
plant. Clay soil becomes very heavy
when wet and if cultivation has to be
done, organic fertilizers have to be
added. Clay soil is formed after years
of rock disintegration and
weathering. It is also formed as
sedimentary deposits after the rock is
weathered, eroded and transported.
 Clay soil
•
 Loamy soil
• Loamy Soil- This soil consists of sand, silt and clay to
some extent. It is considered to be the perfect soil.
The texture is gritty and retains water very easily, yet
the drainage is well. There are various kinds of loamy
soil ranging from fertile to very muddy and thick sod.
Yet out of all the different kinds of soil loamy soil is
the ideal for cultivation.
Loamy soil
 Chalky soil
• Chalky Soil-Unlike Peaty soil, Chalky soil is very
alkaline in nature and consists of a large number of
stones. The fertility of this kind of soil depends on
the depth of the soil that is on the bed of chalk. This
kind of soil is prone to dryness and in summers it is a
poor choice for plantation, as the plants would need
much more watering and fertilizing than on any
other type of soil. Chalky Soil, apart from being dry
also blocks the nutritional elements for the plants
like Iron and Magnesium.
 Chalky soil

•
Peaty soil
 Peaty soil
• Though the soil is rich in organic matter, nutrients
present are fewer in this soil type than any other
type.

• Peaty soil is prone to water logging but if the soil is

fertilized well and the drainage of the soil is looked
after, it can be the ideal for growing plants.
Sub soil
 Sub soil
• most soil are about a foot in depth ,though many of
them are no deeper than eight or nine inches below
this is what gardeners call the subsoil ,which may be
similar in character to the material above ,and yet
which may not contain available plant foods it is
important to try and get the soil to as great a depth
as possible.
Oll Difrent Types Of Soil
Dark Color Indicates Organic
Matter
 Erosion
• a process in which the materials of Earth’s surface are
loosened, dissolved, or worn away and transported from one
place to another by a natural agent, such as wind, water, ice,
or gravity

• When rock weathers, the resulting rock particles do not

always stay near the parent rock.

• Various forces may move weathered fragments of rock away

from where the weathering occurred.
 Soil Erosion
• Ordinarily, new soil forms about as fast as existing soil erodes.

• Some farming and ranching practices increase soil erosion.

• Soil erosion is considered by some scientists to be the greatest

environmental problem that faces the world today.

• This erosion prevents some countries from growing the crops

needed to prevent widespread famine.
Water Erosion----- Rill erosion
 Water Erosion----- gullies or gully erosion

Gullies are larger than rills and

cannot be fixed by tillage.
Gully erosion is an advanced
stage of rill erosion, just as
rills are often the result of
sheet erosion.
 Wind Erosion

Wind erosion, unlike water, cannot

be divided into such distinct
types. Surface texture is the best
key to wind erosion hazard
potential.
 Gravity Erosion

Gravity is the principal force

acting to move surface
materials such as soil and
rock.
 Frozen-melt Erosion

A particularly mysterious form of frost

damage is frost heave, resulting in damaged
roads, buildings and cropland. As can be
expected, frost heave works with the
strength of frost.
 Gullying
• One farming technique that can accelerate soil erosion is the
plowing of furrows, or long, narrow rows.

• As soil is washed away with each rainfall, a furrow becomes

larger and forms a small gully.

• Eventually land that is plowed in this way can become covered

with deep gullies.

• This type of accelerated soil erosion is called gullying.

Gullying
 Sheet Erosion
• the process by which water flows over a layer of soil
and removes the topsoil

• Another type of soil erosion strips away parallel

layers of top soil.

• Sheet erosion may occur where continuous rainfall

washes away layers of the topsoil.

• Wind also can cause sheet erosion during unusually

dry periods.
Map of Soil Erosion accelerated by water
 Results of Soil Erosion
• Constant erosion reduces the fertility of the soil be removing
the A horizon, which contains the fertile humus.

• The B horizon, which does not contain much organic matter, is

difficult to farm because it is much less fertile than the A
horizon.

• Without plants, the B horizon has nothing to protect it from

further erosion.

• So, within a few years, all the soil layers could be removed by
continuous erosion.
 Soil Conservation
• Certain farming and grazing techniques and
construction projects can also increase the rate of
erosion.

• This land clearing removes protective ground cover

plants and accelerates topsoil erosions.

• But rapid, destructive soil erosion can be prevented

by soil conservation methods.
 Contour Plowing
• In one method, called contour plowing, soil is
plowed in curved bands that follow the
contour, or shape of the land.

• This method of planting prevents water from

flowing directly down slopes, so the method
prevents gullying.
Contour Plowing
 Strip-Cropping
• In strip-cropping, crops are planted in alternating
bands.

• The cover crop protects the soil by slowing the runoff

of rainwater.

• Strip-cropping is often combined with contour

plowing. The combination of these two methods can
reduce soil erosion by 75%.
Strip-Cropping
 Terracing
• The construction of steplike ridges that follow
the contours of a sloped field is called
terracing.

• Terraces, especially those used for growing

rice in Asia, prevent or slow the downslope
movement of water and thus prevent rapid
erosion
Terracing
 Crop Rotation
• In crop rotation, farmers plant one type of crop one
year and a different type of crop the next.

• For example, crops that expose the soil to the full

effects of erosion may be planted one year, and a
cover crop will be planted the next year.

• Crop rotation stops erosion in its early stages, which

allows small gullies that formed during one growing
season to fill with soil during the next one.
 Gravity and Erosion
• Mass movement - the movement of a large
mass of sediment or a section of land down a
slope

• Gravity causes rock fragments to move down

inclines.

• Some mass movements occur rapidly, and

others occur very slowly.
 Rockfalls and Landslides
• The most dramatic and destructive mass movements occur
rapidly.

• The fall of rock from a steep cliff is called a rockfall. A rockfall

is the fastest kind of mass movement.

• When masses of loose rock combined with soil suddenly fall

down a slope, the event is called a landslide.

• Heavy rainfall, spring thaws, volcanic eruptions, and

earthquakes can trigger landslides.
 Mudflows and Slumps
• The rapid movement of a large amount of mud
creates a mudflow.

• Mudflows occur in dry, mountainous regions during

sudden, heavy rainfall or as a result of volcanic
eruptions.

• Mud churns and tumbles as it moves down slopes

and through valleys, and it frequently spreads out in
a large fan shape at the base of the slope.
Slumps
 Solifluction
• the slow, downslope flow of soil saturated with water
in areas surrounding glaciers at high elevations

• Solifluction occurs in arctic and mountainous

climates where the subsoil is permanently frozen. In
the spring and summer, only the top layer of soil
thaws.

• Solifluction can also occur in warmer regions, where

the subsoil consists of hard clay.
 Creep
• the slow downhill movement of weathered rock
material

• Soil creep moves the most soil of all types of mass

movements. But creep may go unnoticed unless
buildings, fences, or other surface objects move
along with the soil.

• Many factors contribute to soil creep

 USLE - Universal Soil Loss Equation

A = RKLSCP = Annual soil loss rate

• R= rainfall erosivity Hydrologic cycle factor

• K= soil erodibility
Soil/topography-
• L = slope length related factors
• S = slope steepness
Land
• C = cover and management management
• P = erosion-control practices factors

Revised (RUSLE) and Modified (MUSLE)

versions also exist

http://cropandsoil.oregonstate.edu/classes/css305/lectures/Chpt13_erosion_short.pdf
http://snr.osu.edu/current/courses/NR675/transport_soil.pdf
http://snr.osu.edu/current/courses/NR675/transport_soil.pdf
 R-factor Rainfall erosivity
• R = EI for a given storm
– E is the kinetic energy of the storm
– I is the maximum 30-minute intensity of the storm
• EI is calculated for each storm and then
summed to get the annual erosivity index
As a rule of thumb, wind
speeds greater than 8 m/s
(17 mph) at 2 meters
(6feet) height are
generally required to
initiate movement of
mineral soils.
 SOIL ERODIBILITY - K
• General effect of texture
– Fine textures: (clays) resistant to detachment
because of aggregation
– Coarse textures: (sands) easily detached, but low
runoff, large, dense particles not easily
transported
– Medium textures: (loams) moderately detachable,
moderate to high runoff
– Silts: easily detached, high runoff, small, easily
transported sediment
 K: soil erodibility factor
A = RKLSCP

• Infiltration capacity
• Structural stability
– Particle cohesion
• cementation by Organic Matter and clays
– Particle mass (2.0 g/cm3 for bauxite, 5.3 for
hematite, 7.6 for galena)
 Soil properties resulting in
low K values (less erosion)
• High organic matter content
• Non-expansive clays
• Strong granular structure
• “stoniness” & macropores, uses values
of: % silt and very fine sand, % sand, %
organic matter, soil structure, and soil
permeablity
Soil-erodibility nomograph.
 LS (slope length-gradient)

• Ratio of soil loss under given conditions to that at a

site with the "standard" slope and slope length.
A =R x K x LS x C x P
Topographic LS factor
 C (crop/management)

• Ratio of soil loss from land use under specified conditions to

that from continuously fallow and tilled land.
Crop Factor
Grain Corn 0.40
Silage Corn, Beans & Canola 0.50
Cereals (Spring & Winter) 0.35
Seasonal Horticultural Crops 0.50
Fruit Trees 0.10
Hay and Pasture 0.02
Tillage Factor
Fall Plow 1.00
Spring Plow 0.90
Mulch Tillage 0.60
Ridge Tillage 0.35
Zone Tillage 0.25
A =R x K x LS x C x P No-Till 0.25
 P (conservation practices)

• Ratio of soil loss by a support practice to that of

straight-row farming up and down the slope.

Support Practice P Factor

Up & Down Slope 1.00
Cross Slope 0.75
Contour farming 0.50
Strip cropping, cross slope 0.37
Strip cropping, contour 0.25

A =R x K x LS x C x P
 Treatment Soil loss C factor Runoff Millet yield
(t ha-1) mm % runoff
Bare fallow 1.83 100 7.9 3.1
Groundnut cover 0.18 9.8 3.07 1.2 470 -750
Mulching 0.089 4.9 1.22 0.48 1130 - 1275
Ridging 0.19 10.4 0.7 0.27 1182 - 1350
Minimum tillage 0.19 10.4 1.41 0.55 680 - 700
Mixed cropping 0.31 16.9 4.04 1.59 560
Soil erodibility factor for various soil textures
 USLA adapted for Ethiopia
Adaptations: R correlation based on Hurni, 1985
K values from Bono and Seiler, 1983, 1984 and Weigel, 1985
S extrapolation based on Hurni, 1982
Equation: A = R x K x L x S x C x P
1. Rainfall erosivity
Annual rainfall (mm) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400
Annual R factor 48 104 217 441 666 890 1115 1340
2. Soil erodibility
Soil colour black brown red yellow
K factor 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3
3. Slope length
Length (m) 5 10 20 40 80 160 240 320
L factor 0.5 0.7 1.0 1.4 1.9 2.7 3.2 3.8
4. Slope gradient
Slope (%) 5 10 15 20 30 40 50 60
S factor 0.4 1.0 1.6 2.2 3.0 3.8 4.3 4.8
5. Land cover, C
Dense forest Sparse forest Dense grass Degraded grass Badlands - hard Badlands - soft
0.001 see grass 0.01 0.05 0.05 0.4
Fallow - hard Fallow - ploughed Sorghum or maize Cereals, pulses Teff Cont. fallow
0.05 0.6 0.1 0.15 0.25 1
6. P, management factor
Ploughing up & down 1.00 Applying mulch 0.6
Ploughing on contour 0.9 Strip cropping 0.6
Stone cover = 40% 0.8 Intercropping 0.8
Stone cover 80% 0.5 Dense intercropping 0.7
 Soils by Properties
• Granular ( or cohesionless) Soils
– Soil particles do not tend to stick together
– Gravel
– Sand
– Silt
• Cohesive Soils
– Soil particles tend to stick together.
• Surface chemical effects
• Water-particle interaction and attractive forces between particles
– Clay
• Organic Soils
– Spongy, crumbly, and compressible
– Undesirable for use in supporting structures
 Granular Soils
• High shear strength –
• Large bearing capacity
• Small lateral pressure;
• High permeability (easily drained)
– Good backfill materials for retaining walls
• Relatively small settlements
– Good embankment material
– Good foundation materials for supporting roads
and structures
 Cohesive Soils
• Sticky, plastic, and compressible
• Expand when wetted; Shrink when dried
• Creep (deform plastically) over time under “constant”
load (when the shear stress is approaching its shear
strength)
• Develop large lateral pressure
– No good for retaining wall backfills
• Low permeability or Impervious
– Good core materials for earthen dams and dikes
• Lower shear strength
– Generally undesirable engineering properties
 Silty Soil
• On the border between clayey and sandy soils
• Fine-grained, but cohesionless
• High capillarity and susceptibility to frost
action
• Low permeability, Low relative densities
 Organic Soil
• Soil containing a sufficient amount of organic matter
to affect its engineering properties
• Property: spongy, crumbly, compressible
• Low shear strength
• May contain harmful material
• Unacceptable for supporting foundations
 Properties of soil
• Behavior of sands and gravels is inferred from
– Shape
– Size
– Density of packing of the constituent particles
• Behavior of silts and clays is controlled by
– Surface activity of the particles
– Interaction of the particles with water
 Capillarity
• The rise of water in a small-diameter tube
• Cause:
– cohesion of the water’s molecules
– adhesion of the water to the tube’s wall
• Capillarity in soil
– Capillarity tube in soils are the void spaces among soil particles.
• Height of capillary rise
– Calculation is virtually impossible
– Inversely proportional to the tube’s diameter
– Associated with the mean diameter of a soil’s voids
– The smaller the grain size, the greater will be the capillary rise
– Largest capillary rise occurs in soils of medium grain size (such as silts and very fine
sands)
• Where it occurs?
– at the water table
 Frost Heave
• Vertical expansion of soil caused by freezing water within the soil
• Serious damage may result from frost heave when structures are lifted
– The amount of frost heave is not uniform in a horizontal direction
– Develop cracks
• When frozen soil thaws, the melted water can not drain through
underlying frozen soil
1. increase water content of the upper soil
2. decrease its strength
3. subsequent settlement of structures
 Compressibility
• If soil is compressed
– Its volume is decreased
– Why? - Reduction in voids within the soil
– Result? - Extruding of water from the soil
• Building settlement:
– Cohesionless soil (sand, gravel)
• Compress relatively quickly
• Most of the settlement will take place during the construction phase
• Compression of cohesionless soils can be induced by vibration.
– Cohesive soils (clays)
• Compressibility is more pronounced
• Lower permeability – expulsion of water from the soil is slow
• Compress much slowly
• Settlement of a structure built on this soil may not occur until some time after the
structure is loaded.
 Two-phases of settlement
• Immediate settlement
– Occurs very rapidly
• Consolidation settlement
– Occurs over an extended period of time (months or years)
– Characteristic of cohesive soils
– Primary consolidation
• Faster and generally larger
• Easier to predict
– Secondary consolidation (creep)
• Occurs subsequent to primary consolidation
• Due to plastic deformation of the soil
 Consolidation
• Settlement – total amount of settlement
• Consolidation – time dependent settlement
• Consolidation occurs during the drainage of pore water
caused by excess pore water pressure

94
 Settlement Calculations
• Settlement is calculated using the change in void ratio

95
Settlement Calculations

96
 Compactness – Relative Density
• If soil is in densest condition
– Lowest void ratio
– Highest shear strength
– Greatest resistance to compression
• If soil is in loosest condition
– Highest void ratio
– Lowest shear strength
– Lowest resistance to compression
• Compactness is the relative condition of a given
soil between two extremes
 Compactness – Relative Density
• Relative Density (Dr)
emax  e0
Dr  100%
emax  emin
– emax : Highest void ratio possible for a given soil (void ratio of the soil in its
loosest condition)
– e0 : Void ratio of the soil in-place
– emin : Lowest void ratio possible for the soil (void ratio of the soil in its densest
condition)

• Alternative expression using dry unit weights

 max    min 
Dr  100%
  max   min 
 Compactness – Relative Density
• Varies between 0 and 100%

Less than 15% Very Loose

15 – 35% Loose

35 – 65% Medium Dense

65 – 85% Dense

Over 85% Very Dense

Basic Volume/Mass Relationships

101
Typical Values of Parameters:

102
 Permeability
• Flow through soils affect several material properties such as shear strength and
compressibility
• If there were no water in soil, there would be no geotechnical engineering
Darcy’s Law Definition of
Darcy’s Law
• Developed in 1856

h
• Unit flow, qk
L

Where: K = hydraulic conductivity

∆h =difference in piezometric or “total” head
∆L = length along the drainage path
Darcy’s law is valid for laminar flow
Reynolds Number: Re < 1 for ground water flow

103
104
 Seepage
• 1-D Seepage:
Q=kiA
where, i = hydraulic gradient =∆h /∆L
∆h = change in TOTAL head

Downward seepage increases effective stress

Upward seepage decreases effective stress

• 2-D Seepage (flow nets)

105
 c) Porosity
• It is defined as the proportion of the volume of
soil pores (air and water) in comparison with
the total volume of soil.
• i.e. Porosity, P = Volume of Pores, Vp / V
• It normally ranges from 0.2 (20%) to 0.6
(60%).
• One of the main reasons for measuring soil
bulk density is that this value can be used to
calculate soil porosity.
• For the same particle density, the lower the
bulk density, the higher the porosity.
 Derivation of Formula Used to Calculate
Porosity of Soil

Ms Ms
By definition: Particle density, Dp  and Bulk density, Db 
Vs Vs  Vp
Solving for Ms gives: Ms = Dp x Vs and Ms = Db (Vs + Vp)

Therefore: Dp x Vs = Db (Vs + Vp) and

`Since;

Since: Pore space + Solid space = 1 and Pore space (Porosity) = 1 – Solid space ,
then:
Vs D Vs D
 solid space then solid space  b  b
Vs  Vp Dp Vs  Vp Dp

Db
Porosity, P  1 
Dp
 More Definitions of Soil Phase
Relations
(d) Void Ratio (e): It is defined as the volume of
Pores (Vp) divided by the volume of solids, Vs. It
can be shown that:
P e
e and P
1 P 1 e
(e) Degree of Saturation, S: This is the volume of
water divided by the volume of voids. A soils is said to
be saturated when all pores are filled with water i.e.
when:
Vw = Vp
 3.3 Density and Unit Weight
• Mass is a measure of a body's Mass
inertia, or its "quantity of Density ,  
Volume
matter". Mass is not changed
Weight Mass  g
at different places. Unit weight ,   
Volume Volume
• Weight is force, the force of
gravity acting on a body. The g : acceleration due to gravity
value is different at various     g    9.8 m 2
places (Newton's second law F sec
= ma) (Giancoli, 1998) Water,   9.8 kN 3
m
• The unit weight is frequently
 s s  g  s
used than the density is (e.g. Gs   
in calculating the overburden w w  g  w
pressure).
 3.4 Weight Relationships
• (1)Water Content w (100%)
Mass of water (M w )
w 100%
Mass of soil solids (M s )
•
• For some organic soils w>100%,
up to 500 %
• For quick clays, w>100%
• (2)Density of water (slightly
varied with temperatures)
w  1g / cm3  1000 kg / m3  1Mg / m3
•(3) Density of soil
•a. Dry density
Mass of soil solids(Ms )
d 
Total volume of soil sample (Vt )
•b. Total, Wet, or Moist density (0%<S<100%,
Unsaturated)
•c. Saturated density (S=100%, Va =0)
Mass of soil sample(Ms  M w )

Total volume of soil sample (Vt )
•d. Submerged density (Buoyant density)
Mass of soil solids  water (Ms  M w )
sat 
Total volume of soil sample (Vt )
'  sat  w
3.6 Typical Values of Specific Gravity

(Lambe and Whitman, 1979)

(Goodman, 1989)
Definitions: Density of Solid Particles, Dp
(Particle density):
• (a) It is defined as the mass per unit volume of soil
solids usually expressed as g/cm3 or Mg/m3 .
• i.e. Particle density = Ms/Vs where Ms is the mass
of dry soil
• Particle density is essentially the same as the specific
gravity of a soil substance and varies within a narrow
range of 2.60 to 2.75 g/cm3 with the average being
assumed as 2.65 g/cm3 for a typical soil with 1 to 5%
organic matter content.
• Montmorillonite can have a particle density of 2.74
g/cm3, quartz , 2.65 and kaolinite, 2.61 g/cm3.
 9.3 The Relative Density (Dr)
•The relative density Dr is used to characterize
the density of natural granular soil.
emax  e
Dr  100%
emax  emin
  
 d max  d d min 100%
d  d max   d min

(Lambe and Whitman, 1979)

The relative density of a natural soil deposit very strongly affects
its engineering behavior. Consequently, it is important to conduct
laboratory tests on samples of the sand at the same relative
density as in the field ( from Holtz and Kovacs, 1981).
(compaction) 113
 9.3 The Relative Density (Dr) (Cont.)
“The relative density (or void ratio)
alone is not sufficient to characterize
the engineering properties of granular
soils” (Holtz and Kovacs, 1981). Two soils with
the same relative density (or void
ratio) may contain very different pore
sizes. That is, the pore size
distribution probably is a better
parameter to correlate with the
engineering properties (Santamarina et al.,
2001).

2 : 1
Holtz and Kovacs, 1981
114
 (b) Bulk Density, Db:
• It is defined as the mass of a unit volume of dry soil.
This includes both solids and pores. i.e. bulk density
= Ms/V ; Ms is the mass of dry soil and V is the total
volume of undisturbed soil.
• The major method of measuring bulk density in the
field is to collect a known volume of undisturbed soil
(V) in a soil core, and drying it in the oven to remove
all the water to obtain Ms. The values of bulk density
range from 1.0 for loose open soil to 1.7 g/cm3 for
compacted soil.
• Values of bulk density are mainly affected by soil
texture (sandy soils have more density than silty and
clay soils), degree of soil aggregation and is reduced
by soil organic matter content.
 Soil Wetness
• This can be expressed by mass or by volume.
• (i) By Mass (Pm) – gravimetric system: This
is equal to:

• Weigh soil, put in oven at 105 oC for about

48 hours; weigh again and obtain the weight
of water by subtraction.
• A good soil should have moisture contents
between 5 and 60% and for peat or organic
soils, it can be greater than 100%.
 Soil Wetness by Volume

(ii) Volumetric water content, Pv. This is equal to:

Vw V Volume of water
Pv   w
Vs  Va  Vw V Total volume of undisturbed soil sample
Recall that volume = mass/density i.e.

M w / Dw M
Since Dw = 1 Pv  and Pv  w x Db
M s / Db Ms
i.e. Pv = Pm x Db where Db is the bulk density of the soil.
 SOIL PROPERTIES AND MOISTURE CONTENT

• Moisture content is a critical factor for soil

behaviour.
• In a soil tillage context, it is not a good measure
e.g. 40% moisture content does not say anything
about the degree of wetness.
• For clay, the soil may be moist at 40%
moisture content, but for sandy loam soil, it can
be flowing as a liquid.
• Soil tension is also not useful.
 3.2.1 Engineering Applications (e)
•Typical values •Engineering applications:
Simple cubic (SC), e = 0.91, Contract

Cubic-tetrahedral (CT), e = 0.65, Dilate

–Volume change tendency

–Strength
Link: the strength of
i
rock joint
(Lambe and Whitman, 1979)
Shear strength  n tan(   i)
3.2.1 Engineering Implications (e)(Cont.)
– Hydraulic conductivity
• Which packing (SC or CT) SC
has higher hydraulic e = 0.91
conductivity?

CT
e = 0.65

The fluid (water) can flow more easily through the

soil with higher hydraulic conductivity
3.2.1 Engineering Applications (e)(Cont.)
Filter
SC
e = 0.91

The finer particle cannot pass

Clogging through the void
CT
e = 0.65

Critical state soil mechanics

 5.9 Engineering Applications
• Lime treatment for the swelling clay
•The swelling clay such as Na-montmorillonite beneath the foundation is
potentially harmful to the light structure. Adding lime (CaO) into such
soil can effectively reduce the swelling potential due to Ca2+ displacing
Na+, and can increase the strength by dehydration of soils and
cementation.
• Drilling mud
The swelling clays can
Soil particle form a so-called “filter
cake” and enable soil Pressure
layers to become profile of
relatively impermeable. slurry

Earth
Bentonite or pressure+
Polymer ground water
pressure
Trench
Montmorillonite is the dominant clay mineral in bentonite
Xanthakos, 1991
122
3.2.2 Engineering Applications (S)
•Completely dry soil S = 0 %
•Completely saturated soil S = 100%
•Unsaturated soil (partially saturated soil) 0% < S < 100%

Total volume of voids contains water (Vw )

S 100%
Total volume of voids (Vv )

•Effects of capillary forces

–Slope stability
–Underground excavation
3.2.2 Engineering Applications (S) (Cont.)
80 % of landslides are due to erosion
and “loss in suction”
The slope stability is significantly
affected by the surface water.

(Au, 2001)
surface

substrate
Soil Temperature

Temperature of the earth is determined by the energy

balance:

RN = RS - RR -RL
RN = net energy
RS = short wave radiation coming
in from the sun
RR = short wave radiation
reflected
RL = long wave (infrared) radiation
emitted from the earth
 Soil Temperatures

Standard Soil Temperature is measured at 50 cm or at

rock/hardpan interface.

Mean Annual Soil Temperature (MAST): measured at 10 m;

approximately equal to mean annual air temp plus 1oC.
Measurements at 2 m are close.
Subsoil temperatures fluctuate much less than surface soils
because of buffering by upper soil layers.
2-11
 Soil Temperature fluctuations dampen with depth and
become close to mean annual temp + 1 oC at 2 m. Mulching
or litter layer dampens fluctuations at the surface.

Temperature
Soil Depth (m)

Without mulch
1
With mulch

2
 Factors Affecting Soil Temperature

Water:
Heat Capacity of the soil is the amount of heat
(calories) needed to raise 1 g of soil 1 degree Celsius. It
is a function of texture, organic matter and moisture
content. Finer textured soils (e.g., clays, clay loams)
have higher heat capacity than coarse textured soils
(e.g., sand).

Heat Capacity is highly dependent upon water content:

Heat Capacity of water is (1.0 cal g-1) about 5 times
greater than that of the soil itself (0.2 cal g-1).
• Thermal Conductivity (ks): ability of the substance to
transfer heat
– Dependent upon soil composition (moisture content,
density of soil vs. that of air, type of soil, etc.)

• Heat Capacity (Cs): amount of heat required to raise

the temperature of a unit volume by 1°C/1 K
– Also dependent upon soil composition
– Related: specific heat (cs), amount of heat required to raise
the temperature of a unit mass by 1°C/1 K
• Thermal Diffusivity (Ks): ratio of thermal conductivity
to the heat capacity (ks/Cs)
– Controlling influence upon the rate of speed at which a
temperature change propagates through a medium
– Analogous to an exchange coefficient

• Thermal Admittance (μs): the rate at which a surface

can accept or release heat energy [μs = (ksCs)½]
– Admittance of both the soil and atmosphere are important
– Higher admittance = reduced temperature change because
heat is transferred efficiently rather than stored locally
Moister soils require
thermal more thermal energy
conductivity heat acapacity
Moister soils have greater ability to
to warm by 1°C / 1 K than drier soils conduct heat because of soil moisture
because of soil moisture dependence. dependence.

thermal diffusivity
Higher soil moisture thermal
content promotes a Soil moisture admittance
dependence relies on ratio
greater ability to transfer heat across a between increases in ks and Cs.
surface (rather than being trapped).
Thermal conductivity of soil refers to the
movement or penetration of thermal energy
into the soil profile.

Conductance is also strongly affected by texture

(increases with finer texture), organic matter
(lowers with increasing organic matter), and water
content (increases with increasing water content).

When soil water content is high enough to bridge

gaps between particles, further increases in soil
moisture have little effect upon conductance.
 Notice that adding water makes texture have
opposite effect (wet sand higher cond. than wet clay)
Because water has higher heat capacity and
higher thermal conductivity than soil minerals, wet
soils are harder to heat up initially, but heat to
deeper depths than dry soils.

Dry soils tend to get very hot at surface. Moist soils

are usually cooler than dry soils because of their high
specific heat, even though conductance is also greater
in moist soils.

Rain and irrigation water can also cool or warm

soil quickly, depending upon the temperature
of the incoming water compared to the soil.
Consistence

• The degree and kind of

cohesion and adhesion
that soil exhibits, and/or
the resistance of soil to
deformation or rupture
under applied stress. Field
evaluations of consistence
usually include rupture
resistance, stickiness, and
plasticity.
Consistence

• Stickiness is the capacity

of a soil to adhere to
other objects. Stickiness is
estimated at the moisture
content that displays the
greatest adherence when
pressed between the
thumb and forefinger. This
normally occurs when the
soil is quite wet.
Consistence

• Plasticity is the degree to

which a reworked soil can
be permanently deformed
without rupturing.
Plasticity is evaluated by
forming a roll (wire) of soil
that is 4 cm long.
Shrink-swell Potential

• Shrink-swell potential is a
measurement of the amount of
volume change that can occur
when a soil wets and dries. Most
of this volume change is due to
the clay fraction of the soil. Clays
swell when wet and shrink when
dry. Soils high in 2:1 clays such as
montmorillonite tend to have
high shrink-swell potentials. Soils
high in 1:1 clays such as kaolinite
tend to have low shrink-swell
potentials.
 5.8 Swelling Potential
Practically speaking, the three ingredients generally necessary for
potentially damaging swelling to occur are (1) presence of
montmorillonite in the soil, (2) the natural water content must be
around the PL, and (3) there must be a source of water for the
potentially swelling clay (Gromko, 1974, from Holtz and Kovacs, 1981)

U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation Holtz and Kovacs, 1981
147
Shrink-swell Potential

• A soil with a high shrink-swell

potential can cause severe
problems when used for urban
development unless the
problem is recognized and
proper engineering
precautions taken. Shrinking
and swelling can buckle roads,
crack building foundations and
walls, and even damage plant
roots.
 Shear Strength of Soil
s  c   tan 
Coulomb equation
s = shear strength
c = cohesion Cohesionless Soil
s =  tan
 = effective intergranular normal

Shear Strength, s
sand
(perpendicular to the shear plane)
pressure
 = angle of internal friction
tan  = coefficient of friction s = c +  tan

Cohesive Soil, s = c
clay
Cohesion, c

Effective Intergranular Normal Pressure, 
 Diagram Depicting Soil Consistency

Very Increasing Moisture Content Very Wet

Hard

Cemented Friable Sticky

Harsh Plastic Liquid
Hard Mud

Upper Plastic
Shrinkage Lower Plastic Limit (Liquid Limit)
limit Limit (Plastic Limit)
Soil Consistency
2.12 Soil Physical Properties & Engineering

Liquid limit is the water content in the soil at which the soil
will flow under standardized disturbance .
Plastic limit is the minimum water content at which the
mixture acts as a plastic solid.
Plasticity index is the difference between the LL and the PL.
shrinkage limit test is that the amount of shrinkage depends
not only on the grain size but also on the initial fabric of the
soil.
 4.1 Atterberg Limits
• The presence of water in fine-grained soils can significantly affect
associated engineering behavior, so we need a reference index to clarify
the effects. (The reason will be discussed later in the topic of clay minerals)

In percentage

(Holtz and Kovacs, 1981) 156

 4.1 Atterberg Limits (Cont.)

Fluid soil-water
Liquid State
mixture
Liquid Limit, LL
Increasing water content

Plastic State

Plastic Limit, PL
Semisolid State

Shrinkage Limit, SL

Solid State
Dry Soil

157
4.5 Typical Values of Atterberg Limits

(Mitchell, 1993)

158
 4.6 Indices
•Plasticity index PI •Liquidity index LI
•For describing the range of •For scaling the natural water
water content over which a content of a soil sample to
soil was plastic the Limits.
•PI = LL – PL w  PL w  PL
LI  
PI LL  PL
Liquid State C
w is the water content
Liquid Limit, LL
PI Plastic State B
Plastic Limit, PL LI <0 (A), brittle fracture if sheared
Semisolid State A
0<LI<1 (B), plastic solid if sheared
Shrinkage Limit, SL
LI >1 (C), viscous liquid if sheared
Solid State

159
 Earth Pressure at Rest
In a homogeneous natural soil deposit,
GL

v’
h’
X

the ratio h’/v’ is a constant known as

coefficient of earth pressure at rest (K0).

Importantly, at K0 state, there are no lateral

strains.
160
 Estimating K0
For normally consolidated clays and granular soils,
K0 = 1 – sin ’

For overconsolidated clays,

K0,overconsolidated = K0,normally consolidated OCR0.5

From elastic analysis,


K0  Poisson’s
1  ratio

161
 Active/Passive Earth Pressures
- in granular soils

Wall moves
away from soil

Wall moves A
towards soil
B

smooth wall

Let’s look at the soil elements A and B during the wall

movement.
162
 Active Earth Pressure
- in granular soils

v’ = z
Initially, there is no lateral movement.
 v’ z
h’ = K0 v’ = K0 z
 h’
A
As the wall moves away from the soil,
v’ remains the same; and
h’ decreases till failure occurs.

Active state

163
 Active Earth Pressure
- in granular soils

As the wall moves away from the soil,



Initially (K0 state)

Failure (Active state)

v’ 
active earth
pressure decreasing h’

164
 Active Earth Pressure
- in granular soils


WJM Rankine
(1820-1872)

[h’]active v’ 

[ h ' ]active  K A v '

Rankine’s coefficient of
1  sin  active earth pressure
KA   tan 2 (45   / 2)
1  sin 
165
 Active Earth Pressure
- in granular soils
 Failure plane is at
45 + /2 to horizontal v’
h’
45 + /2 A

 90+

[h’]active v’ 

166
 Active Earth Pressure
- in granular soils

As the wall moves away from the soil,

h’ decreases till failure occurs.

 h’ K0 state
 v’ z
Active
 h’
A state

wall movement

167
Active Earth Pressure
- in cohesive soils

Follow the same steps as

for granular soils. Only
difference is that c  0.

[ h ' ]active  K A v '2c K A

Everything else the same

as for granular soils.
168
 Passive Earth Pressure
- in granular soils

Initially, soil is in K0 state.

As the wall moves towards the soil,

v’ remains the same, and
v’
h’ increases till failure occurs.
 h’
B
Passive state

169
 Passive Earth Pressure
- in granular soils

As the wall moves towards the soil,


Initially (K0 state)
Failure (Active state)

passive earth
pressure

v’ 

increasing h’
170
 Passive Earth Pressure
- in granular soils



v’ [h’]passive 

[ h ' ] passive  K P v '

Rankine’s coefficient of
1  sin  passive earth pressure
KP   tan 2 (45   / 2)
1  sin 
171
 Passive Earth Pressure
- in granular soils
 Failure plane is at
45 - /2 to horizontal v’
45 - /2 h’
A

 90+

v’ [h’]passive

172
 Passive Earth Pressure
- in granular soils

As the wall moves towards the soil,

h’ increases till failure occurs.

 h’ Passive state
v’
 h’
B
K0 state

wall movement

173
  h’
Passive state

Active state
K0 state

Wall movement
(not to scale)
 Field Compaction
Smooth Wheeled Roller

Compacts effectively only to 200-300 mm; therefore, place the soil in

shallow layers (lifts)

177
 Field Compaction
Vibrating Plates

 for compacting very small areas

 effective for granular soils

178
 Field Compaction
Sheepsfoot Roller

 Provides kneading action; “walks out” after compaction

 Very effective on clays

179
 Field Compaction
Impact Roller

 Provides deeper (2-3m) compaction. e.g., air field

180
 Dynamic Compaction
- pounding the ground by a heavy weight
Suitable for granular soils, land fills and karst terrain
with sink holes.

solution cavities in
Pounder (Tamper) limestone

Crater created by the impact

(to be backfilled)
 We have to estimate the lateral soil/rock pressures
acting on these structures, to be able to design them.

Gravity Retaining Soil nailing

Reinforced earth wall
wall 182
Soil Nailing

183
 Sheet Pile

Sheet piles marked for driving

184
 Sheet Pile

Sheet pile wall

185
 Sheet Pile

During installation Sheet pile wall

186
 Lateral Support

Reinforced earth walls are increasingly becoming popular.

geosynthetics

187
 Lateral Support
filled with
Crib walls have been used in Queensland. soil
Good drainage & allow plant growth.
Looks good. Interlocking
stretchers
and headers

188
 Effective Stress
• Effective stress is defined as the effective pressure that occurs at a specific
point within a soil profile
• The total stress is carried partially by the pore water and partially by the
soil solids, the effective stress, σ’, is defined as the total stress, σt, minus
the pore water pressure, u, σ' = σ − u

189
 Effective Stress

• Changes in effective stress is responsible for volume change

• The effective stress is responsible for producing frictional resistance between the
soil solids

• Therefore, effective stress is an important concept in geotechnical engineering

• Overconsolidation ratio,

Where: σ´c = preconsolidation pressure

• Critical hydraulic gradient σ′ = 0 when i = (γb-γw) /γw → σ′ = 0
190
Vertical Stress Increase with Depth
• Allowable settlement, usually set by building codes, may control the
allowable bearing capacity
• The vertical stress increase with depth must be determined to calculate
the amount of settlement that a foundation may undergo
Stress due to a Point Load
 In 1885, Boussinesq developed a mathematical relationship for vertical
stress increase with depth inside a homogenous, elastic and isotropic
material from point loads as follows:

191
 EXAMPLE

Total Stress () Pore Water Pressure (u) Effective Stress (’)

26.2 kPa 26.2 kPa

-2.0

71.2 kPa 25 kPa 46.2 kPa

-4.5

160.3 kPa 70 kPa 90.3 kPa

-9.0

Bina Nusantara
Profile of Vertical Stress
 STRESS DISTRIBUTION

• Point Load
P

z 2

1
z

P
z  2
z
Bina Nusantara
 STRESS DISTRIBUTION

• Uniform Load

L
z
B

L+z
B+z

q.B.L
z 
( B  z)( L  z)
Bina Nusantara
Vertical Stress Increase with Depth
• For the previous solution, material properties such as Poisson’s ratio and
modulus of elasticity do not influence the stress increase with depth, i.e.
stress increase with depth is a function of geometry only.
• Boussinesq’s Solution for point load-

195
 Stress due to a Circular Load

• The Boussinesq Equation as stated above may be used to derive a

relationship for stress increase below the center of the footing from a
flexible circular loaded area:

196
Stress due to a
Circular Load

197
 Stress due to Rectangular
Load
• The Boussinesq Equation may also be
used to derive a relationship for stress
increase below the corner of the
footing from a flexible rectangular
loaded area:

Concept of superposition may also be employed to

find the stresses at various locations.

198
Elastic Properties of Soil

199
Elastic Properties of Soil

200
 Hyperbolic Model

Empirical Correlations for cohesive soils

202
Basic Definitions :

1) Ultimate Bearing Capacity (qu) :

The ultimate bearing capacity is the gross
pressure at the base of the foundation at which
soil fails in shear.

2) Net ultimate Bearing Capacity (qnu) :

It is the net increase in pressure at the base
of foundation that cause shear failure of the
soil.

Thus, qnu = qu – γDf (ovrbruden pressure)

3) Net Safe Bearing Capacity (qns) :
It is the net soil pressure which can be safely
applied to the soil considering only shear failure.
Thus, qns = qnu /FOS

FOS - Factor of safety usually taken as 2.00 -3.00

4) Gross Safe Bearing Capacity (qs) :

It is the maximum pressure which the soil can carry
safely without shear failure.
qs = qnu / FOS + γ Df
5)Net Safe Settlement Pressure (qnp) :
It is the net pressure which the soil can carry
without exceeding allowable settlement.

6) Net Allowable Bearing Pressure (qna ):

It is the net bearing pressure which can be used
for design of foundation.
Thus,
qna = qns ; if qnp > qns
qna = qnp ; if qns > qnp

It is also known as Allowable Soil Pressure (ASP).

 Sand & hard Plastic clay
Clay

Max.Settle. Diff.Settl Angular Max.Settle Diff. Angular

distortion Settle. distortion

Isolated
foundation
i) steel struct 50mm 0.0033L 1/300 50mm 0.0033L 1/300
ii) RCC struct 50mm 0.0015L 1/666 75mm 0.0015L 1/666
Raft
foundation
i) steel struct 75mm 0.0033L 1/300 100mm 0.0033L 1/300
ii) Rcc struct. 75mm 0.002L 1/500 100mm 0.002L 1/500

Theoretically, no damage is done to the superstructure if the soil settles uniformly.

However, settlements exceeding 150mm may cause trouble to utilities such as water
pipe lines, sewers, telephone lines & also is access from streets.
 Soil Stabilization
The soil stabilization means the improvement of stability or bearing power of the soil by the
use of controlled compaction, proportioning and/or the addition of suitable admixture or
stabilizers.

Basic Principles of Soil Stabilization….

• Evaluating the properties of given soil
• Deciding the lacking property of soil and choose
effective and economical method of soil stabilization
• Designing the Stabilized soil mix for intended stability
and durability values
 Need for Soil Stabilization
• Limited Financial Resources to Provide a
complete network Road System to build in
conventional method
• Effective utilization of locally available soils
and other suitable stabilizing agents.
• Encouraging the use of Industrial Wastages in
building low cost construction of roads.
 Methods of Soil Stabilization

• Mechanical Stabilization
• Soil Cement Stabilization
• Soil Lime Stabilization
• Soil Bitumen Stabilization
• Lime Fly ash Stabilization
• Lime Fly ash Bound Macadam.
 Mechanical Stabilization
• This method is suitable for low volume roads
i.e. Village roads in low rainfall areas.
• This method involves the correctly
proportioning of aggregates and soil,
adequately compacted to get mechanically
stable layer
• The Basic Principles of Mechanical Stabilization
are Correct Proportioning and Effective
Compaction
Desirable Properties of Soil-Aggregate Mix

• Adequate Strength
• Incompressibility
• Less Changes in Volume
• Stability with Variation in water content
• Good drainage, less frost Susceptibility
• Ease of Compaction.
 Factors Affecting Mechanical
Stabilization

• Mechanical Strength of aggregates

• Gradation
• Properties of the Soil
• Presence of Salts
• Compaction
Mechanical Strength

• When the soil is used in small proportion to fill

up the voids the crushing strength of aggregates
is important
Gradation

• A well graded aggregate soil mix results in a mix

with high dry density and stability values
Properties of soil

• A mix with Plasticity Index, results poor stability

under soaking conditions. Hence it is desirable to
limit the plasticity index of the soil
Presence of Chemicals

• Presence of Salts like Sulphates and mica

are undesirable
• Presence of Calcium Chloride is Beneficial
Compaction

• Effective Compaction is desirable to

produce high density and stability mix
 Soil Cement Stabilization

• Soil Cement is an intimate mix of soil,

cement and water, compacted to form a
strong base course
• Cement treated or cement modified soil
refers to the compacted mix when cement is
used in small proportions to impart some
strength
• Soil Cement can be used as a sub-base or
base course for all types of Pavements
 Factors affecting soil cement stabilization

• Soil
• Cement
• Pulverisation and Mixing
• Compaction
• Curing
• Additives
 Soil

THE PHYSICAL PROPERTIES

• Particle Size Distribution

• Clay content
• Specific Surface
• Liquid limit and Plasticity Index

Cement

A increase in cement content generally causes

increase in strength and durability
Pulverisation and Mixing

• Better the Pulverisation and degree of mixing,

higher is the strength
• Presence of un pulverised dry lumps reduces
the strength
Compaction

• By increasing the amount of compaction dry

density of the mix, strength and durability also
increases
Curing

Adequate Moisture content is to be retained in

order to accelerate the strength
Additives

There are some additives to improve properties

• Lime
• Sodium hydroxide
• Sodium Carbonate
• Calcium Chloride
 Design of Soil –Cement Mix
• Soil – Cement specimens are prepared with
various cement contents in constant volumes
moulds
• The compressive strength of these specimens
tested after 7 days of curing
• A graph is plotted Cement content Vs
compressive strength
• The Cement Content Corresponding to a
strength of 17.5 kg/cm2 is taken as design
cement content
 Soil Lime Stabilization
• Soil- Lime has been widely used as a
modifier or a binder

• Soil-Lime is used as modifier in high plasticity

soils
• Soil Lime also imparts some binding action
even in granular soils
 Factors affecting Properties of Soil-Lime
Lime Content
• Generally increase in lime content causes
slight change in liquid limit and considerable
increase in Plasticity index
• The rate of increase is first rapid and then
decreases beyond a certain limit
• The point is often termed as lime fixation
point
This is considered as design lime content
Type of Lime

• After long curing periods all types of limes produce

same effects. However quick lime has been found
more effective than hydrated lime
• Calcium Carbonate must be heated at higher
temperature to form Quick lime calcium oxide( CaO)
• Calcium oxide must be slaked ( by the addition of
water) to form Hydrated lime

• Compaction
• Compaction is done at OMC and maximum dry
density.
Curing

• The strength of soil-lime increases with curing

period upto several years. The rate of
increase is rapid during initial period
• The humidity of the surroundings also affects
the strength
Additives

• Sodium metasilicate, Sodium hydroxide and

Sodium Sulphate are also found useful
additives
 Soil- Bituminous Stabilization
• The Basic Principles of this stabilization are
Water Proofing and Binding
• By Water Proofing inherent strength and
other properties could be retained
• Most Commonly used materials are Cutback
and Emulsion
• Bitumen Stabilized layer may be used as
Sub-base or base course for all the roads
Factors affecting properties of soil-bitumen
Soil

• The particle size, shape and gradation of the

soil influence the properties of the soil-bitumen
mix.
Types of Bitumen

• Cutbacks of higher grade should be preferred

• Emulsions generally gives slightly inferior
results than Cutback.
Amount of Mixing

• Increasing proportion of bitumen causes a

decrease in dry density but increases the
stability after a certain bitumen content
• The optimum bitumen content for maximum
stability generally ranges from 4 to 6%
Mixing

• Improved type of mixing with low mixing period

may be preferred
Compaction
• Effective Compaction results higher
stability and resistance to absorb water
Additives
• Anti stripping and reactive chemical additives have been tried to improve
the properties of the mixes
• Portland cement can also be used along with the soil bitumen